Railway car truck



Nov. 5, 1935.

on. YOUNG RAILWAY CAR TRUCK 2 Sheets-Shawv 1 Filed June 20, 1954 [marl/L5 l2 Min/g,

\wm m rll] WITNESSES: @AiMZW @rmm] TTORNEYS.

Nov. 5, 1935. c. D. YOUNG RAILWAY CAR TRUCK File d June 20, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 7 %TTORNEYS.

n 0. M u

m WC TEL Film E s1 Sw NVMHN SW WI 'TNESSES:

Patented Nov. 5, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT orries RAILWAY CAR TRUCK Charles D. Young, Haverford, Pa.

Application June 20, 1934, Serial No. 731,460

8 Claims.

This invention relates to railway car trucks, and more particularly to a novel arrangement of springs and associated parts for supporting the truck bolster upon the side frames.

Heretofore it has been proposed to increase the spring capacity of car trucks, as well as to improve their rlding qualities, by the provision of a combination of coil and leaf springs, so designed and proportioned as to produce a non-harmonic spring suspension. An example of such a car truck is disclosed in my pending application for U. S. Letters Patent, Serial No. 642,331, filed November 12, 1932. With car trucks of this type the leaf springs exert an outward thrust upon the base of each side frame tending to spread the side frames, and thus placing an undue strain upon the spring plank or connecting member between the side frames. Moreover, there are numerous limitations in car truck design which render it difficult to obtain the desired amount of space for the accommodation of the springs.

The object of the present invention is to provide a satisfactory solution for the above-mentioned problem and to eliminate certain difficulties which have heretofore been experienced. This end is accomplished by the provision of a novel arrangement of springs of different characteristics in which the springs of one character exert an outward thrust upon the side frames near the base thereof, and the springs of another character exert a neutralizing thrust in the opposite direction. Moreover, an important feature of the invention is that it does not involve many changes in standard truck construction.

Other specific objects and advantages characterizing my present invention will become more fully apparent from the description hereinafter set forth of one example of the invention, having reference to the accompanying drawings, whereof:

Fig. I represents a side elevation of a railway car truck embodying my invention.

Fig. II represents a transverse sectional view of the same, showing the arrangement of the bolster (with portions thereof cut away for clearness of illustration), the springs and the side frames.

Fig. III represents a top plan view of a portion of the truck, with parts broken away to reveal the spring arrangement.

Fig. IV represents a cross section of a side frame, taken as indicated by the lines IV-IV of Fig. I; and,

F V and VI r p esent enlarged perspective views, respectively, of the lower and upper spring caps for the coil springs.

With particular reference to Figs. I and II of the drawings, there is shown a car truck having side frames l of a common construction, each 5 side frame including tension members 2, com-- pression members 3, and journal boxes 4, formed integrally therewith. Guide columns 5 define windows 6 at the center of each side frame I. The tension members 2 of each side frame merge with 10 a. base or web portion 1 upon which an assembly of coil springs is mounted. In the illustrated example of the invention, which represents only one of many different spring arrangements which may be employed, there are shown three large 15 coil springs 8a and five small coil springs 8b substantially filling the horizontal area of the window of each side frame, certain of the small coil springs being arranged concentrically with and within the large coil springs. A bolster 9 extends be- 20 tween the side frames i with its end portions supported on the helical springs 8a, 8b. I

Additional resilient means for supporting the bolster 9 are provided in the form of elliptical springs Ill, each group being made up of a plu- 25 rality of leaves joined together at the center by a spring band i I. At its underside, intermediate the ends thereof, the bolster 9 is formed with curved seats I2 complementary to the top surfaces of the spring bands I l and adapted to bear there- 80 upon. Depending lugs l3 are also provided heneath the bolster 9. These lugs serve to support the inner ends of the elliptical leaf springs III. According to the preferred practice,'the lug I3 is formed with openings I! through which the 35 ends of the elliptical springs l0 pass, and the lug terminates in a roimded ledge l5 for supporting the downturned extremity of the leaf spring. The elliptical springs. l0 thus act as cantilever springs, and the manner in which they 40 are connected to the bolster is substantially the same as described in my previously filed application referred to above.

In lieu of the usual spring plank, there is shown in the drawings a connecting member between the side frames I in the form of a loop bar l6 which is supported at its ends upon hook shaped ledges l1 projecting inwardly from the side frames I. I do'not claim the loop bar Iii as a part of my invention, and show the same merely as a convenient illustration of a type of connecting member for the side frames which may be used to advantage in conjunction with the novel spring arrangement which is hereinafter more particularly described.

The coil springs 8a, 8b are assembled and held against shifting by lower and upper seat members shown in the form of spring caps l8 and I9, respectively, and illustrated in enlarged form in ,Figs. V and VI. These spring caps l8 and I9 are desirably formed with annular bosses 20 of such size as to fit snugly within the small coil springs 8b and thus restrain them against lateral shifting. The upper spring cap l9, as shown in Figs. II and VI, is provided on its top face with upstanding cones 2| which engage in correspondingly shaped recesses in the end of the bolster 9. Each lower spring cap l8 in its preferred form is provided with two annular recesses 22 at the underside thereof near the outer edge, and such recesses are engaged by two upstanding annular bosses 23 formed on an outwardly extending ledge 24 of the web portion 1 of the side frame i. The ledge 24 has perforations 25 centrally of the bosses 23 which make it possible by the application of a convenient tool to force the lower spring cap l8 upwardly and thus to disengage it from the side frame whenever it is desired to remove the spring assembly. Adequate means are thus provided for preventing lateral shifting of the coil springs 8a, 8b and their upper and lower caps l9 and I8.

As shown most clearly in Fig. III, the arrangement of the coil springs 8a, 8b in such that the springs are symmetrically disposed with respect to the transverse axis :c--y of each side frame I. In the example illustrated, one small and one largecoil spring is located with its center directly on the transverse axis :r-y, and the remaining coil springs are paired at equal distances from opposite sides of this axis. On the other hand, the coil springs 8a, 8b are disposed non-symmetrically with respect to the longitudinal axis a-b of each side frame, and so situated that the effective center of pressure of the spring group is at a point outside the longitudinal axis ab. Ordinarily the capacity of the coil springs will exceed the capacity of the leaf springs; and by positioning the coil springs in the manner shown, having due regard for the total capacity of the coil spring group, the total capacity of the elliptical springs, and the points at which the loads are applied, it is possible to neutralize substantially the thrust which is exerted by the elliptical springs and which tends to spread the side frames. In this manner the side frames 1 may be maintained in proper equilibrium, even when the trucks are heavily loaded, and no undue strain is placed upon the loop bar l6.

It will be observed thatwith the car truck of this invention, it is possible to obtain increased spring capacity, with the elliptical springs breaking up the harmonics usually caused by the action of helical springs alone, and at the same time the undesirable effects of an outward thrust upon the side frames are eliminated, all being accomplished with a minimum departure from existing car truck design.

, 'While I have described one particular example of a car truck of my invention, showing a particular arrangement of coil springs and cantilever elliptical springs, it will be apparent that various changes may be made as to the form and arrangement of these springs and the associated parts, without departing from the spirit of my invention as defined'in the annexed claims. K

Having thus described my invention, I claim: 1. In a car truck, the combination of side frames having windows therein, a bolster, resilientmeans for supporting the bolster on said side frames, said means substantially filling the .windows of said side frames and being disposed substantially vertically with the center of pressure applied outside the longitudinal axis of each side frame, and additional parallel acting resilient means for supporting the bolster on said side frames disposed substantially horizontally and in the plane of the bolster and bearing upon each side frame inside the longitudinal axis thereof, the eccentric load of said horizontally disposed 1 means being substantially balanced by the ec centric load of said vertically disposed means.

2. In a car truck, the combination of side frames having windows therein, a bolster, coil springs substantially filling the windows of the 1 side frames for supporting the bolster thereon, said springs having their effective center of pressure applied outside the longitudinal axis of each side frame, and cantilever springs for said bolster disposed transversely of the side frames and 2 bearing upon each side frame inside the longitudinal axis thereof, the eccentric load of said cantilever springs being substantially balanced by the eccentric load of said coil springs.

3. In a car truck, the combination of side 2 frames having windows therein, a bolster, resilient means substantially filling the windows of the side frames for supporting the bolster on said side frames, said means being disposed in the plane ofthe bolster and bearing upon each side frame near its base and at a point inside the longitudinal axis thereof thereby tending to spread the side frames, and additional resilient means for supporting the bolster on said side frames, said means being disposed substantially 3 vertically with the center of pressure applied outside the longitudinal axis of each side frame and having such capacity as to substantially neutralize the outward thrust of the first men- 40 springs substantially filling the windows of the side frames with the center of pressure applied outside the longitudinal axis of each side frame and said springs having such capacity and being so located as to substantially neutralize the outward thrust of said cantilever springs. a 5. In a car truck, the combination of side frames having windows therein, a bolster, sets of coil springs for supporting the bolster on said side frames and substantially filling the windows thereof, said coil springs being disposed symmetrically with relation to the transverse axis ofeach side frame and non-symmetrically with relation to the longitudinal axis thereof, with the effective center of pressure applied outside said longitudinal axis, and additional parallel acting cantilever 6 side frames substantially filling the windows 75 thereof, said coil springs being disposed symmetrically with relation to the transverse axis of each side frame and non-symmetrically with relation to the longitudinal axis thereof, with the efiective center of pressure applied outside said axis, and cantilever springs for supporting said bolster, said cantilever springs being centered with respect to the transverse axis of each side frame and hearing upon each side frame inside the longitudinal axis thereof,-the eccentric load of said cantilever springs being substantially balanced by the eccentric load of said coil springs.

7. In a car truck, the combination of side frames having windows therein, a bolster, coil springs substantially filling the windows for supporting the end portions of the bolster on said side frames, and leaf springs for supporting intermediate portions of the bolster on said side frames, each said side frame having a ledge extending inwardly from the base thereof for supporting the end of a leaf spring, and having a ledge extending outwardly from the base for sup-.

porting a coil spring, the coil springs being so disposed as to neutralizethe outward thrust of the leaf springs.

8. In a car truck, the combination of side frames having windows therein, a bolster, coil 5 springs in the windows of the side frames for supporting the bolster thereon, certain of said springs being disposed with their vertical axes inside the longitudinal axis of the side frame, and others being disposed with their vertical axes 10 outside the longitudinal axis of the side frame, and said springs being so disposed that the effective center of pressure of the group is applied outside the longitudinal axis of each side frame, and cantilever springs for said bolster disposed l5 transversely of the side frames and bearing upon each side frame inside the longitudinal axis thereof, the eccentric load of said cantilever springs being substantially balanced by the eccentric load of said coil springs. 20

CHARLES D. YOUNG. 

